I remember a friend recommended me this book, or well this series of books, a while ago because they said it was different and that it put together history and present times together. And I admit, that after reading it, it was a little interesting because it seemed to make you think about what you would do to change the past if you had the chance to control it and the actions and consequences. The story was mythical and powerful and overall engaging because it seemed to invite the imagination to open up and really take a look at everything that was there within its pages and at all the different characters. I was a little tired when reading it so I probably didn't take in the entire fall dept, but I did enjoy it a lot.I think when we are children we all imagine that flying horses exist, as well as unicorns and all sorts of magical creatures. We believe in magic and creatures and we believe we are industructable. Its a powerful write and it really seemed to make me feel like I was living in my childhood and that of course meant that the book became more vibrant. Georgia is living in a very difficult life, where there is a brother, or well step brother, who is bullying her but no one else can see it. She needs an escape from life and yet she can not seem to get it because he is alwaysthere, always spying on her and telling on her. She is tired of this life and wants to live but its become hard. That is until she finds an escape through a tallion she just didn't know she had, a tallion in the formation or a winged horse.In the other part of the world there is a boy with a flying horse that needs to be hidden for its own safety and there is another boy who is being sent to priesthood because he is not fit to be married off due to a gammy leg. Georgia could very well be the thing, the person, that helps to make the final changes that need to be made to make there society better. She soon becomes a popular person over there which isnt hard considering there is another boy of her time there who is living there because he died back in her world. The only problem was that they all thought she was a boy, because of the style of her hair and the way that she dresses and acts, but that isnt too big a problem and it is one that she works around. We see a lot of mysteries unravel in this book though and we can see that times are hard. Georgia really wants to help everyone, and she does things that she never thought she could do. It seems to make her a better and stronger person, someone who now knows what it means to survive and to enjoy life. she knows that times are hard but that actually its not about fighting back its all about turning the other cheek and looking at what needs to be done. I felt that there was a whole lot of morals and meanings here within the lines, a lot of things that were meant to challenge us and to make us look at our life in a whole new aspect and formation. I do think that the book was well written adn I actually look forward to reading the rest of the series. you could just get this sense that you could relate to the story and that actually if you looked at it with open eyes you could make it more alive in the sense that you became one with the book. a wonderful write that I would happily read again.
It's not like I didn't REALLY enjoy the first book in the Stravaganza series - I did. But City Of Stars, the second, very welcome installment, is a marvel. It expands on the universe introduced in the first novel. In scope, of course, as a new Stravangante Georgia escapes her unhappy real life (tortured as she is by her brother Russell and her lack of self-confidence and friends) and lands in another Talian city-state - this time the intoxicating city of Remora, on the brink of its annual horse race that pits the 12 sections of the city against each other. The sheer amount of detail that goes into Hoffman's descriptions of this Remora is breathtaking: culture, history and tradition are mixed into the magical and fantastical, as a winged horse is birthed in the Ram (the Twelfth to which Georgia declares her allegiance, and the Twelfth which is aligned to the Bellezza of the first novel).But what is really exciting about this second novel is the explosion of character development that takes place within its pages. She takes every character from the first book and gives them space in this one, particularly the hero Lucien (now Luciano) and the hateful, blue-cloaked spy Enrico... but also introduces an entire set of new, fascinating characters, from other Stravaganti (Paolo) to a sweeping introduction to members of the ruling di Chimici family. No longer are the di Chimici viewed merely as pure, black-and-white villains - it becomes clear that the weak, snivelly ambassador Rinaldo glimpsed in City Of Masks does no justice to the complexity of this huge family bent on creating an empire. Instead, the reader is introduced to Niccolo, the manipulative, calculating head of the family with a surprising affection and love for his sons, the delicate, crippled Falco who dreams of a better life in which he can be whole again, and the courtly gentleman Gaetano, in every way a repudiation of the image one had formed of a di Chimici villain. This, in particular, proves a triumph, as it lends Hoffman's series a weight that was missing (though not noticeably so) from the first novel. A sweeping epic that covers romance, politics, action, magic and the thrill that can come from reimagining history, City Of Stars, even more so than its predecessor, truly marks the Stravaganza series out as one to watch... every inch as rewarding and complex as its counterpart in adult fantasy fiction.
What do You think about City Of Stars (2005)?
I read this when I was probably around 12...which was a while ago, but for the benefit of any young adult readers looking for a good read, I figured I would throw in my thoughts on some of my favorite books from that time. I loved this series, waited for the newest edition to the series, and devoured the whole book a few hours after buying it. They are all, especially the first three, a perfect blend of fantasy and slightly backwards Italian Renaissance history, as well as a good dose of lessons on the problems of not fitting in with other kids. While some books for this age group can be a little heavy handed when doling out advice to pre-teens, I felt like Hoffman had a good idea of how to create a character that evolved over the course of the story by becoming more confident in who they are but also did not make the story overwhelmingly centered on that.Most importantly though, I loved this book most because of its story. First off, the condensed myth of Italy is that there were two brothers raised by a she-wolf and their names were Romulus and Remus. When they were older, they fought and Romulus won - founding Rome. In the series, Talia is formed after Remus wins thereby forming Remora. Going off of this if you basically think of every historical fact being just a little different and a little more magical, you can actually get a pretty good basic understanding of Italian history. Funnily enough years after I read this, I went to Siena, Italy (which is what the city in this book is based off of) and as soon as I walked into the main square all of these random pieces of City of Stars popped back in my head. It was one of the coolest feelings, we had just decided to stop last minute and I thought I had known absolutely nothing about this city But as soon as we walked into the square everything about the Palio horserace flashed back into my head!I also think this book provides an excellent female character to lead the story. Georgia is probably one of the characters that changes the most drastically over the course of the story and it is nice to see a girl who becomes confident in her own skin and solves major problems on her own.
—Ally
City of Stars revolves primarily around Georgia O'Grady, who buys a wooden horse with wings and thus stravagates (is that the right English term?) to Remora. Like in the first book, the story is not told from the protagonist's POV. I have no problems with that, but I do with it the number of characters that are introduced, and there for are also told from their point of view. It can be said that Georgia, Cesare and Falco are the most important new characters. Cesare is the boy whose family Georgia enters in Remora. Falco is a young son from the Di Chimici family.The story is set around a horse race, the Stellata. It has to do with astronomy. The theory behind it was a little too complicated. There are 12 horoscopes, who are either each other’s allies or enemies. Each horoscope belongs to a city – I believe? Mary could have made this story a little simpler, especially because there are so many characters.Apart from this the book was very pleasant to read. Remora is a completely different city than Bellezza and here too you can get a beautiful image through Mary’s writing style. The enmity between Bellazza and the Di Chimici family can be seen as the thread of the series. Characters from the first book, such as Luciano and Arianna come back. No matter how lovely Georgia is and how much sympathy you'll get for this girl, I wish Mary had written the books entirely around Luciano and Arianna. Their story remains the most interesting.
—Ajita
Georgia would love nothing more than to ride horses every day and avoid her annoying stepbrother at all costs. But she could never have guessed that a tiny, antique winged horse figurine would be the key to her escape to another world and another time. When Georgia arrives in a sixteenth-century city called Remora, she is plunged into a dangerous and treacherous world of horse-racing, family honour and deadly rivalry. And there, as a new Stravagante, Georgia will have a dramatic and extraordinary role to play..
—Kate
